Mind & Soul

Author: Amber French

The space where you lay your head at night can be an important tool in the journey towards living your fullest and best life.  Most of us have more than enough space to hold all of our stuff. But, the thought of turning that space into a place that allow us to decompress and be creative can be over shadowed by those same belongings.

What is your first reaction when you decide to redecorate a room? We usually hit the closest big box store to buy what someone else tells us is going to make us feel at peace and relaxed and “whole” in our bedroom.

What if our first step was to purge or repurpose? Could we find our “master suite oasis” by having less?

Creating a creative and alive space to lay my head at night has become very important to me. We are directed so often to clean up our diets and our work out routines, even how to brighten up our office space. We are told to get more sleep, yet not much thought goes into what that space consists of.

So much of my life I have laid my head down in a space that encompasses all things I don’t want in my life. I ask my cells to renew and muscles to regenerate, my brain to relax and sort all the sensory information I have taken in that day and the days prior. But the space I am spending 6-8 hours every night is someone else’s image. It can be dark and dramatic or bright and airy, but it was not my design.

It does not reflect who I am or more importantly who I have yet to become.

To be honest, I haven’t put much though into my bedroom, I always felt other rooms deserved any time and attention that I could spare. After all my bedroom was only for me….

There is a ton of advice on how to create the perfect bedroom, but the advice is usually given with the slant that someone may drop by to critique your pad at any time and if you don’t get it just right you may become subject to public humiliation. If your sheets aren’t the exact shade of pale grey to pull out the subtle hint of lavender in your walls “they” will shun you and your family.

What if we chose to surround ourselves with what resonates with us? With what renews and supports our dreams and visions? What if keeping your extra sheets rolled perfectly in a handwoven basket by the foot of the bed makes you want to scream. Or worse what if your bedroom looks no different than your college dorm. You have changed why hasn’t your space?

I intend to reclaim my space and rewrite the rules. So that when I am sleeping all the messages I want to absorb are surrounding me each and every night.

Here are somethings I hope to incorporate into my own bedroom

• Living things – plants, especially great big tropicals can supply our bedrooms with rich freshoxygen that will aid in all of the crazy biological processes that happen when we sleep.
• Adopting an open door policy – I won’t be ashamed of my sleeping space anymore.
• Art work, tapestries and anything that I have created that I thought wasn’t “good enough” to display.
• Embracing the “alter” – utilizing things that inspire me and keep me focused on creating.
• Purge – get rid of all things that no longer serve who you want to be. Unburden yourself from the old ways of thinking, freeing up your spirit physically and emotionally.
• Remove all piles – laundry, old mail, work files and books I “should” read.
• Replace my pillow regularly.

Most importantly make sure you choose what to bring into your space with your gut and all 5 senses. If you favorite colour isn’t “in” this season, but it feels right choose it! If the sheets you have keep you cozy and feel like a warm hug don’t dismiss them because they may be frayed or mismatched. If you want to open your eyes to art that YOU love or someone you love created for you every morning DO IT.

Create your own loving and purposeful space allowing your body and soul to do what they do best.

Sweet Dreaming,
Amber

Author: Amber French

I always hit a point in my health journey where I get really good at setting up road blocks for myself. It is usually right before I get to a goal I have set for myself. The closer I get to my intention the more roadblocks I encounter. It’s like I am sleep-building and in the morning I awake to see all these obstacles in my way. I get super mad at the jerk that is blocking my good intention. News Flash: I am the Jerk…

I have NEVER reached a goal weight or timed run or dress size at the time I set for myself to achieve it. Although I have lost a ton of weight over my life and achieved a lot of great fitness goals, it is never when I planned to do it. I used to believe that was ok and that I need to relax and it wasn’t all about the goal/outcome, it was about the journey. TRUE…BUT…. It was also a damn good excuse for not recognizing that I was sabotaging myself. If I I get to close to a goal, all of a sudden I split into two people. One of which has the full time job of setting obstacles and triggers to throw me off my game.

And let me tell you she is GREAT at her job.

Until I learned to start listening to my inner dialogue (and correcting it) I couldn’t defeat my arch nemesis. Who truly believed I wasn’t worthy/good/loved enough to be that weight/size/fast. Once I realized “the Jerk” was my own insecurities I could finally invite her to tea and discuss those feelings and maybe persuade her to allow me to reach my goal. I did this by contracting each of her negative (untrue) thoughts with one of my own positive (proven) thoughts.

It went a little something like this:
Jerk: You aren’t a fit/skinny person and you never will be…
Me: Well actually I have dropped four dress sizes already and ran my first triathlon
Jerk: Who do you think you are?
Me: I am the person who put in all the time, menu planning and consistently hit the gym throughout my journey.
Jerk: You missed three workouts last week, you don’t deserve to lose any weight this week.
Me: I made it to two workouts last week and I had time to clean out the garage and take the kids tobogganing. That is a fair trade off and a great calorie burn.
Jerk: People are going to think you are selfish for taking all this time to “take care of yourself”
Me: What People?

Finally my inner voice got very tired because of course she didn’t have the stamina (of someone who works out and watches what she eats) to let this battle continue any longer. Would you let your friends speak to you, the way you speak to yourself?

The next day I woke up and my path was clear(er) and I had far fewer roadblocks in way. Now when I see the roadblocks that show up as “no time” “too tired” “kids first” or “one bag won’t hurt you” I turn my kettle on and invite my much kinder inner voice to have a little chat about ways we can help each other and remove some of these roadblocks out of OUR way. After all, if they are roadblocks for me, they are roadblocks for her too.

If you wouldn’t say it to your Grandma or your pooch, don’t say it to yourself! Be kind with your inside voice as well as your outside voice!
Amber